The assignment

In the fall of 2016 an exciting tasting adventure was going on in the cellars of beer brewery Hertog Jan. For nine months Crown jewel Grand Prestige had matured on wooden barrels of port, bourbon and brandy in Arcen, a small town in the south of The Netherlands. In addition, master brewer Gerard had initiated a special collaboration with barrel-aging experts from Goose Island in Chicago. The Grand Prestige had also matured in Chicago on barrels of the world famous beer Goose Island Bourbon County Stout. In March 2017 all of the barrels were emptied and the beer was bottled which meant the finale of a long and beautiful tasting adventure.
De Wolven had the honor to tell the story of Hertog Jan Vatgerijpt to the public.

Our role

Setting up the tasting journey
From the beginning of the ripening process we took key media on a journey where they could follow the development of flavor that the beer went through in the barrels. We invited them to visit the brewery at the beginning of the adventure and send them intermediate samples.

Content
Creating usable content and news hooks for media.

Events
Organizing events to let different experts experience the taste and thus become part of the Vatgerijpt story. There was a press trip to Goose Island and tastings for culinary and spirits experts. The launch of Hertog Jan Grandprestige Vatgerijpt was celebrated at the Michelin star restaurant Bolenius with an extensive dinner with 30 journalists and influencers.

The result

The launch of the new beer had a free publicity value of more than € 982,565.00. Some examples:
Attention for Hertog Jan Grandprestige Vatgerijpt in AD Magazine, Telegraaf Vrij, Esquire, JFK, Elle Eten, Playboy, Quote, Panorama, Nieuwe Revu, New Scientist, Hollands Glorie and Foodies.